Firsts
by Lugia P2K
Summary: Every relationship has its firsts, whether positive or negative. A look into a select few for a couple of X-Laws; ranging from their first meeting to years after the tournament. Marco x Meene.
1. First Glance

**First Glance**

**Pairing: **Marco x Meene

**Author's Note: **Well, it certainly has been a while since I've written anything. I've wanted to write a Marco x Meene based story for a while, since there is a considerable lack of them.

This story will follow the pair through some of their milestones; starting about a year before the Shaman Tournament. It uses both the anime and manga as reference, but doesn't exactly stick to the same series of events.

Written from Marco's POV.

**Disclaimer:** Shaman King belongs to Hiroyuki Takei, not to me.

* * *

When I had first decided to start scouting out potential shamans to assist me with destroying Hao, I hadn't been planning on visiting Montreal. Nor had I been planning on stopping by a small cemetery on the outskirts of town. Yet, that was exactly where I ended up. Something had drawn me there, which I would later come to realize was my own Archangel. He certainly did have a knack for picking out suitable shamans for my goal.

As soon as I had set foot across the threshold leading into the small clearing, the rain started to fall. Nothing more than a drizzle to start, but I knew that it was going to intensify within minutes. I remember thinking that there was no point in hanging around a cemetery during a storm, yet Michael had decided he had his own ideas. My eyes quickly drifted across the tombstones as the spirit zoomed forward; soon coming to rest and act as a sort of canopy over a hunched figure. I squinted for a moment to try and get a better look through my rain-stained glasses, but to no avail. Relenting to my spirit's wishes, I started to move forward toward the seemingly motionless figure.

"You shouldn't be out here in the rain. You'll catch a cold." The surprise on my face when the figure whipped around to glare at Michael must have been evident, for the deep scowl set onto the figure's features was accompanied by a rather harsh response.

"Take your holy spirit and leave me alone."

It wasn't the sort of response I was expecting to receive from a woman visibly shivering in the rain. Especially from a woman that could very clearly see the Archangel hovering above her. My lips must have curled into a frown, for the sandy blond quickly rose to her feet and placed both hands on her hips with a sharp glare.

"Didn't you understand me the first time? I would like some privacy." She snapped, her olive eyes flaring in anger as a flash of lightning lit up the sky behind us. At this, she jumped, and whipped her head around. Her eyes were wide with a silent terror as she took a step back away from the tombstone in front of her. It was only then I was able to get a somewhat decent look at the inscription on the stone.

'Corporal Derrik Montgomery. Loving father to his daughter, Meene. Will always be remembered for his kindness both on and off duty'.

The name had sounded familiar to me. It was then I remembered seeing something on the local news a few days prior. About how a Corporal in the military had been killed in a mysterious house fire…and how it had been a miracle his daughter had survived.

'She's the girl?'

Well, that would explain why Michael had been able to pick her out so easily. Still, she didn't exactly seem open to the idea of having anything to do with me or my spirit, which would prove to be difficult.

Nevertheless, I extended one hand toward her while trying to maintain a faint smile.

"Come on, you might as well head somewhere dry. Your Father wouldn't want you to become any damper than you already are. You catching pneumonia won't do anyone any good." I was being genuine, and for a moment, the woman seemed to be inclined to listen to me. A crash of thunder overhead seemed to be all the motivation she needed to move over to my side and give a slight nod.

"How about we go grab a coffee? I'm sure it would warm both of us up." I felt my smile grow as she finally took my hand and cast a somewhat appreciative glance up at the angel acting as an umbrella.

"What's his name?"

"Michael, the Archangel. My name's Marco. And yours?"

"Meene…" For the first time that afternoon, she cracked the faintest hint of a smile. It was at that point that I realized there was more to her than one could ever realize at first glance.


	2. First Fight

**First Fight**

**Pairing: **Marco x Meene

**Author's Note: **Here's chapter two; Meene's first training session with Gabriel. Enjoy!

Written from Marco's POV.

**Disclaimer:** Shaman King belongs to Hiroyuki Takei, not to me.

* * *

Teaching someone to fight with an Archangel was never an easy task; especially not when the student in question had never fought with 'any' sort of spirit. For what must have been the tenth time that day, I watched as a jagged streak of light shot in the air around the blond trying to control it. If it hadn't been so pitiful to watch, I might have laughed. For a few minutes, I was seriously contemplating whether or not I had made a wise decision in recruiting the young woman to our team. If she couldn't even control her spirit, then how was she supposed to be any threat to Hao?

Neverthless, Lady Jeanne 'had' presented her with Gabriel, so she must have seen some potential in her. Unfortunately, it was I that had to endure training her.

The snickers of our teammates was what brought me back to my senses, only to see the young woman with a distraught look on her face. Frowning, I moved over to her while trying to mask my annoyance.

"What happened?" Upon noticing the way her gaze was directed upwards, I followed and scowled at the sight. Up on top of one of the cliffs sat Gabriel; seemingly amused by the fact that her shaman could do nothing to call her down. Wings were spread out on either side of her as she leaned forward to peer down at the two of us. To this day, I still maintain that she was laughing at Meene.

I was not amused.

Not only was Meene struggling with trying to grasp being a shaman, but her spirit insisted on playing 'wild goose chase'. I wasn't certain if pain could be inflicted upon the Archangels, but I was inching closer to testing that theory.

"Gabriel…" There was a warning tone in my voice, although the Archangel didn't seem inclined to heed it. After all, what was a mortal shaman supposed to do to a god-level spirit?

The rebellious Archangel was soon enlightened, as I sent Michael up to chase her back down into Meene's pistol. The sandy blond winced at the sheer force of the angel returning, before giving me a sidewards glance.

"Thanks."

With a quick motion to push up my glasses against the bridge of my nose, I aimed my own gun out in front of me.

"Gabriel has always been the most spirited of the Archangels. Even I have trouble with her." I wasn't entirely truthful with my statement, but I knew the little white lie wouldn't hurt anything as she offered a smile of gratitude.

So long as the snickering males behind me kept their mouths shut.

"Now, aim at that hole in the cliff and pull the trigger…"

I knew this would only be the first of many fights between shaman and spirit, but I held out hope they would be able to cooperate when push came to shove.


	3. First Date

**First Date**

**Pairing: **Denbat x Meene x Marco

**Author's Note: **Chapter 3 is based off the anime flashback which shows all of the X-Laws hanging out at a bar. Bonus points if you know what flashback I'm talking about.

Written from Marco's POV.

**Disclaimer:** Shaman King belongs to Hiroyuki Takei, not to me.

* * *

"Come on Meene, it'll be fun!" Was all that I heard drifting down the hallway from the small living room. Denbat was at it again, it seemed. It honestly did surprise me that he was still trying to coerce the lone female member of our team into prancing around on his arm. Then again, I suppose it was his idea of fun. He always had been somewhat of the stereotypical male – enjoying both his alcohol and his women, and it seemed that Meene was his current objective. As I heard her response, I couldn't help but silently smirk down to the book I was reading.

"I think I'd have more fun getting into bed with a porcupine."

'Always the lady.' I let out a quiet chuckle, before setting my book on my nightstand and standing up. I rolled my shoulders and cracked my neck before striding into the hallway, continuing to absently listen to the conversation unfolding down the hallway.

"Aw, don't be so harsh. It's not really a date. I mean, everyone else is going to be there. Even Marco!" I scowled to myself at the implication of Denbat's statement. What made him think that I could work constantly without a break? Besides, I had to be there to ensure that none of the rest of them got too drunk to train in the morning. I was not about to babysit a bunch of hung-over adults, no matter the reason.

I stopped mid-step in the middle of the hallway as Meene's answer finally reached my ears.

"Marco's going? Well…I suppose if everyone else is going." She finally relented, and I swore I could 'hear' the grin spreading over Denbat's lips. Apparently he hadn't noticed the slight implication in her answer. Either that, or I was starting to analyze things far too deeply.

I had decided it would be best to act as though I hadn't heard any part of their conversation as I calmly moved into the living room. My eyes silently scanned over the six X-Laws spread out around me. From the looks of it, they had all been enjoying the spectacle happening between the two situated on the couch closest to me.

"All of you should be getting ready if you are still intending on heading out tonight." Turning, I let my gaze soften slightly toward where Meene sat with Denbat.

"If you've decided to come with us, I suggest you get ready as well." I left it at that, before turning and abruptly retracing my steps back toward my room. Something told me I was going to need all of my patience for later that night.

* * *

The hours had passed by relatively quickly, I found, as I sat leaning up against the bar with a small glass in my hand. Unlike my teammates, I had refrained from partaking in any of their 'games'. It was safe to say I was pleased with my decision, as the vast majority of them were now starting to speak about things like complete lunatics. So much for having all of them remain sober all night.

After taking a short sip of the rum in my glass, I heard the bar stool next to me shift. Allowing my gaze to drift in that direction, I found myself face to face with a slightly flustered looking Meene.

"You don't mind if I join you, right?" Despite appearing quite bashful, her tone did hold the 'there's no point in arguing with me' impression that it was normally laced with. Not eager to upset the woman further, I merely gave a shake of my head. Besides, seeing her dressed in something other than her uniform – and a sleeveless red dress, no less – was a nice change.

"Not too eager to go back and join in their games?" I mused, setting my glass down and watching as she absently swished the vodka in hers. Well, at least she hadn't drank much, which was a blessing.

"I'd prefer being with someone sober for a first date." She admitted, although a coy smile flashed across her lips for a split second. Unfortunately, before I had a chance to reassure myself I was not imagining things, she had returned to her normally poised demeanour with the glass pressed to her lips.


	4. First Christmas

**First Christmas**

**Pairing: **Marco x Meene

**Author's Note: **This chapter is more of a stand-alone piece, as it doesn't really follow the time-line of the rest. Set a few months after the tournament. Happy Holidays everyone!

Written from Marco's POV.

**Disclaimer:** Shaman King belongs to Hiroyuki Takei, not to me.

* * *

"Thank you for flying with us today. In a few moments we will be landing at our destination of Montreal, Canada."

The voice booming over the speaker caused me to glance upwards, before I felt my sandy blond companion shift at my side. A slightly muffled yawn fell from her lips as she straightened up and made a slight rolling motion with her head. Hands stretched out in front of her before she turned her gaze up to me with a sleepy smile.

"Ah, sorry. I didn't realize how tired I was. I guess all of that packing yesterday took its toll on me." She blushed faintly before absently trying to straighten out her ruffled hair.

"It was nice to have you as a pillow." She added as an afterthought, causing me to send her a side-wards glance from over top of my glasses. I would have piped up about the newly discovered lack of feeling in my shoulder…had she not had a sheepish grin on her face. Instead, I ended up cracking a faint smirk as well, before rolling said shoulder and standing up. I swung my leather laptop bag over my still awake shoulder and made a hasty exit back onto solid ground. It hadn't been a long flight, but I still missed being able to stand on solid ground. If given the choice, I most certainly would have driven all the way up here. However, when your companion asks you to accompany her and already has plane tickets in hand…it is difficult to say no.

I wasn't aware how quickly I was walking until I heard said companion pipe up behind me.

"Marco! Wait up!" She was giving a slight wave of her hand in my direction, and I immediately slowed. Of course, she hadn't been more than two steps behind me – having a fairly quick gait as well – and was soon at my side. The rest of our journey to pick up our bags was done in silence, and I soon found myself watching for our two pieces of luggage. Meene, however, didn't seem to have many intentions of helping me locate said luggage. Instead, her gaze was intently focused on something – I didn't bother asking what – outside.

"Hey, Marco? Once we drop our stuff off at the hotel, do you think we could go ice skating?"

"Mhm." It was at that exact moment that I saw both of our bags come around the carousel, resulting in me quickly moving forward to tug both of them onto the ground at my feet. Admittedly, I hadn't really bothered to fully comprehend what Meene had asked, being more focused on the task at hand.

* * *

It wasn't until I found myself standing outside, dressed for the weather but 'still' freezing, with a pair of skates dangling from my right hand, that I realized my earlier mistake. Every time someone easily breezed past on the rink before me, I felt my stomach drop. It was twice as bad whenever someone less than a quarter of my age went zooming past. Of all the things she had to –

"Oh, you haven't put them on yet?" Bright olive eyes were now peering up from in front of me, forcing me to drop my attention back down to her. Not that I wouldn't have rather had my attention on her…although perhaps in different circumstances. Now, I found myself faced with two different options for handling the dilemma I was currently in. The first was to simply tell her up front that I had never done anything similar to ice skating in my life. The second was to keep quiet about such a thing, head out onto the ice, and hope for the best. Considering my inherit inability to admit my shortcomings…

"…I just wanted to make sure that you were able to get a pair as well. Go on ahead and I'll meet you out there." I forced a smile onto my lips and gave her a motion forward with my hand. This seemed to be the answer she was looking for, as she flashed me a grin and happily sauntered off to the edge of the rink. As soon as she was out of earshot, I let out a slight groan. This was most certainly going to be the death of me.

Nevertheless, I moved over to a bench to slip on the pair of skates. That went easily enough, until I went to stand up. I nearly toppled over, and had to quickly reach out a gloved hand to steady myself against the bench. I heard a slight snickering coming from behind me, and I immediately whipped my head around to scowl at the child that was likely responsible. What I came face to face with, instead, was a chuckling female Archangel. My eyes narrowed considerably at Gabriel, and I was half tempted to send Michael to chase her away. Luckily, I did still hold some semblance of patience, and decided against drawing my pistol at a crowded skating rink. For the wrath of my companion – and the authorities – for doing such a thing would have been far, far worse than Gabriel laughing at me.

Instead, I turned my attention back toward the rink, and managed to walk down to its edge. My ankles were still shaking slightly as I stood on the last portion of snow; trying to gauge the best way to get on the actual rink without falling flat on my face. And, I succeed…in theory. I did not land on my face, but on my back instead. The physical pain lasted for only a few seconds, but my pride had been irreversibly damaged. I continued to blankly stare up at the cloudy sky above, until it was obstructed by a concerned face gazing down at me. Worry was spread across her features as she extended both gloved hands to help me back up. Despite what I had feared, Meene didn't show any indication that she had been laughing.

"Are you alright? You're not hurt, are you?" She started to frown as she helped me up and back to the snow. Concern had never been a fitting expression for her in my opinion, so I moved quickly to try and remove it.

"Only my pride…" I admitted with a soft – if not slightly forced – chuckle. Thankfully it served its purpose, as Meene's expression seemed to lighten considerably.

"I'm sure your pride will recover soon enough." She grinned, lifting a hand to rest against my cheek for a moment. Gabriel had moved back to her shoulder at this point, though seemed to stay quiet. Still, I swore she was silently mocking me. Of course, I never gave the Archangel the satisfaction, and instead closed my eyes to wait for the inevitable 'you don't know how to do this' statement from my companion.

"…I can help you out if you want. I mean, if you want to stay here." Her eyes held a hint of hopefulness in them, and I couldn't very well turn her down. Especially not after she hadn't called me out on having never done this before.

"If you're willing to try and keep me on my feet. It may be more of a challenge than you think." I admitted, lifting my hand to brush against hers before she drew away to start back toward the rink. At this point, fewer people seemed to be skating around us, which I was thankful for. If I did undoubtedly end up on my back again, at least no one would trip over me. Once she stepped onto the rink I found myself waiting for her to spin around and offer her hands; much like how the parents did when teaching their children. Instead, she just stood there with her back to me. Confused, I felt my brows furrow and my mouth open to protest.

"Wrap your arms around my waist. Then slowly step out onto the ice behind me." The instructions caught me off guard, but, despite being skeptical, I wrapped both arms around her waist. Followed by carefully –very carefully, I might add – putting one foot onto the ice; followed by the other. I did waver slightly, but Meene's rigid frame in front of me kept me standing. A quick glance back from her to make sure I was alright, and we were off. It was certainly a very slow pace for her, but it was just bearable for me. After making our first lap around the rink, I was visibly starting to relax. Granted, not enough to loosen the near death-grip I had on my support system. Still, she didn't seem to mind. Gradually, I couldn't help but starting believing that maybe, just maybe, this wasn't as bad as I had made it out to be.

* * *

The last few rays of the afternoon sun were starting to disappear behind the horizon as I finished making two steaming mugs of hot chocolate; complete with marshmallows on top. Carefully lifting them into my hands, I turned to silently regard the woman sitting on the bed. Meene had one of the blankets wrapped completely around herself, with one hand holding it shut as her gaze was intently focused on the small television atop the dresser. A quick glance to my side, and I was able to distinguish the show as Frosty the Snowman…in French, of course. The language didn't really matter, as I had seen it often enough to know the gist of what was occurring. Besides, watching Meene was far more interesting to me.

Unfortunately, she seemed to have caught on to my glance, and she quickly blinked in my direction. Smiling, I made my way over and handed her one of the mugs. She, in return, extended half of her makeshift blanket-shelter to me. Not being one to reject such an invitation, I shifted the warm comforter around my shoulders, and my free arm around her waist. I felt her shift slightly, and soon her head was on my shoulder again.

"Meene, why did you want to go ice skating in the first place?" I lifted the steaming mug to my lips and took a short sip; noticing the silence that I had seemingly brought up with my question. Had I said something wrong? Just as I was about to tell her to forget about the question, she lifted her head.

"Every Christmas Eve my Father and I used to go ice skating. No matter what he was doing, he always made time to head down to the rink – even if it was for only ten minutes. My balance was always a bit off, so he would always hold on to me from behind." She admitted, her gaze falling down to the mug in her hands. Absently, she began to trace one finger around the rim.

"I suppose it's just hard to break tradition when you've been doing it for so long." Her voice grew softer, as I became acutely aware of just how much this had meant to her. I thought for a moment, before ducking my own head to press a kiss against her temple.

"You don't have to break tradition. We can just…modify it." I spoke, feeling her shift to press her lips to mine. Yes, that certainly had done the trick.

"I suppose you have a point. You are going to need many, many years of ice skating lessons." She laughed, before curling up against me and fixing her gaze back on the tale of the animated snowman. I just shook my head, knowing that she was right, and settled in to try and translate what few words I could of Frosty. Hopefully, I would at least have a basic understanding of the language for our return trip next year.


End file.
